Will mankind have another huge discovery/invention/innovation?

[ahurtt]

Yes, we will discover how to create powdered water. But then, sadly, we won't know what to add to it.

No but seriously, I think our next big breakthrough is going to be building on the discovery of electricity by finding a way to safely, easily, cleanly, and cheaply produce, harness, and transmit massive amounts of energy to anwhere on the planet.

Another possibility could be clone surrogates. I believe there's a sci-fi movie out about this very thing right now in theaters too.

 

[ahurtt]

Originally posted by: theflyingpig
The next major advancement for mankind will be the realization that there is no God, and that all religion is a pursuit of foolishness. Only when we achieve this, will we be released from the confines of stupidity. Everyone knows this.

You better pray that you're right about this

 

[FlashG]

Originally posted by: ahurtt

Originally posted by: theflyingpig
The next major advancement for mankind will be the realization that there is no God, and that all religion is a pursuit of foolishness. Only when we achieve this, will we be released from the confines of stupidity. Everyone knows this.

You better pray that you're right about this

Subtle but true

 

[Jeff7]

Originally posted by: ahurtt

Originally posted by: theflyingpig
The next major advancement for mankind will be the realization that there is no God, and that all religion is a pursuit of foolishness. Only when we achieve this, will we be released from the confines of stupidity. Everyone knows this.

You better pray that you're right about this

Dear God,

Please strike me dead right now to serve as an example to all others who defile your good name.

Or come on, at least strike me down with painful cramps or something.


....


...

Nothing.
Wuss.




Let's just say, I'm not in the least bit concerned about facing any sorts of "punishment" after I'm dead for not adhering to various BS laws of various BS religions.

 

[Toastedlightly]

I always imagine someone (when talking about the miracles of stem cells) being like Prof. Farnsworth from Futurama, thinking that smearing them on everything will fix any problem.

 

[PottedMeat]

Originally posted by: Toastedlightly
I always imagine someone (when talking about the miracles of stem cells) being like Prof. Farnsworth from Futurama, thinking that smearing them on everything will fix any problem.

I await the widespread availability of compact doomsday devices.

 

[Saint Nick]

GUI interfaces that can track a criminal's IP address.

 

[So]

1. Self replicating nanorobots. If you can build anything at the atomic level at home for virtually free, manufacturing will go de-centralized like IP did with the internet.
2. Superconductors with no breakdown field density good up to ~200F (100C). I can't even begin to cover the things you could do.
3. Atomic power. Fusion would do it, but even really large installations of fission reactors would do it. If you could make cheap, clean energy at 10times the rate we do today for 1/10th the cost, we could do all sorts of things economically that are just not feasable today.

Edit:
4. Anti aging medication. If people didn't die, society would change in ways I can't imagine.
5. Full, two way brain-machine interface. Corollary to #4, but think Ghost in the Machine.

 

[Rubycon]

A space shuttle that can travel 18 times the speed of light. (for real) :laugh:

 

[Jeff7]

Originally posted by: So
1. Self replicating nanorobots. If you can build anything at the atomic level at home for virtually free, manufacturing will go de-centralized like IP did with the internet.
2. Superconductors with no breakdown field density good up to ~200F (100C). I can't even begin to cover the things you could do.
3. Atomic power. Fusion would do it, but even really large installations of fission reactors would do it. If you could make cheap, clean energy at 10times the rate we do today for 1/10th the cost, we could do all sorts of things economically that are just not feasable today.

Somehow, I see all three of these making the best sex toy in the universe.

 

[Rubycon]

Originally posted by: Jeff7

Somehow, I see all three of these making the best sex toy in the universe.

Bodily fluid exchange will be long EOL'd by then.

I'd be happy with a toaster that isn't a piece of shit - that's for sure!

 

[Jeff7]

Originally posted by: Rubycon

Originally posted by: Jeff7

Somehow, I see all three of these making the best sex toy in the universe.

Bodily fluid exchange will be long EOL'd by then.

I'd be happy with a toaster that isn't a piece of shit - that's for sure!

I don't know.....with nanotechnology, you could get stimulation of each and every individual nerve ending, all the way up to your spinal cord, no doubt.:laugh:

And you'd need very cheap electricity too, because as a result of that, you'd probably only want to work about 2hrs a month, if even that.


Woody Allen, your Orgasmatron is waiting.

 

[Matthiasa]

Originally posted by: Jeff7

Originally posted by: Rubycon

Originally posted by: Jeff7

Somehow, I see all three of these making the best sex toy in the universe.

Bodily fluid exchange will be long EOL'd by then.

I'd be happy with a toaster that isn't a piece of shit - that's for sure!

I don't know.....with nanotechnology, you could get stimulation of each and every individual nerve ending, all the way up to your spinal cord, no doubt.:laugh:

And you'd need very cheap electricity too, because as a result of that, you'd probably only want to work about 2hrs a month, if even that.


Woody Allen, your Orgasmatron is waiting.

But there is already an orgasmatron... just need surgery to have it implanted into the spine. It even has a remote and everything.

 

[ahurtt]

ATOT will be rendered completely inactive, a virtual ghost town, when someone invents a way to physically punch people in the face over the internet.

 

[Muse]

Originally posted by: BillGates

Originally posted by: theflyingpig
The next major advancement for mankind will be the realization that there is no God, and that all religion is a pursuit of foolishness. Only when we achieve this, will we be released from the confines of stupidity. Everyone knows this.

+1

I think when we get to that level we will have made a quantum leap in consciousness, so yes, this can be seen as an evolutionary turning point equal in significance to the discovery of electricity. This is different from a scientific revolution, though.

 

[Muse]

Originally posted by: astroidea
Brain computer interfaces.
Being able to program the brain like in the matrix, or go into any world anyone can conjure up.
Having computer enhancements to the body like the borg :devil;
There's also nanobots that's being developed that allows our blood to carry far more oxygen so we could all have the stanima of Lance Armstrong.
In short, next huge shift would be the enhancement of the human species via the biological integration of their technology.

That's likely to be a rocky road with caveats, shortcomings, unforeseen difficulties. What you might imagine ahead of time and what will happen will be quite a bit different. For instance, you can have heart transplants now, artificial hearts and some other organs may work out to some degree, but some things will be much harder.

The stamina of Lance Armstrong may be easily achieved. He's only human in today's terms, after all.

 

[Muse]

Originally posted by: Kadarin

Originally posted by: Smartazz
Do you think that mankind will make another amazing advancement such as the use of electricity, before we go extinct?

Yes, and it will happen in our lifetimes. One such advance was the establishment of the internet. In conjunction with the wireless cell networks and smartphones, we now have access to a huge wealth of information at our fingertips almost anywhere in the world.

Possible future advances:

The ability to artificially expand our intelligence, by augmenting it with hardware/software.
Methods for extending human lifespan way beyond the max of ~100 years.
Development of "real" artificial intelligence.

I saw a story the other day in which it was said that children born to day are apt to have an average life expectancy of 100+ years.

AI, well, it has its believers who claim that in the near future it will displace human intelligence and be responsible for our evolution going forward. To the point where the human body will become obsolete and human consciousness will move from its current corporeal hosts to technologically created host forms. I saw a thread here where this was discussed at length and I checked out a book from the library on the subject:

The Singularity is Near - Ray Kurzweil

To believe Kurzweil, we ain't seen nothin' yet.

 

[Muse]

Originally posted by: Rubycon

Originally posted by: Jeff7

Somehow, I see all three of these making the best sex toy in the universe.

Bodily fluid exchange will be long EOL'd by then.

I'd be happy with a toaster that isn't a piece of shit - that's for sure!

I get along very nicely with my toaster. Well, sometimes I ignore it, but it doesn't complain.

 

[Bryan]

Originally posted by: Platypus
stem cells

Ah, I see we've achieved time travel. Bravo!

 

[ed21x]

Originally posted by: theflyingpig

Originally posted by: Smartazz

But I'm arguing that it doesn't making a difference whether or not people believe in religion. It holds certain people back, but not everyone. The people advancing society aren't being held back completely by it.

It does make a difference. Open your eyes, my friend. The stupidity of religion infests nearly every aspect of our society. I would have no problem if people just practiced their religion quietly, but that is not the case. The fools come out to voice their ignorant opinions at every opportunity. They corrupt their children's minds with religious garbage, ensuring the continuation of stupidity for generations to come. This madness must end. Only then will humanity advance. Everyone knows this.

at least GodlessAstronomer comes up with intelligent posts everyone once in awhile... you, on the other hand, truely give atheists a bad name.

 

[ed21x]

Originally posted by: Jeff7

Originally posted by: ahurtt

Originally posted by: theflyingpig
The next major advancement for mankind will be the realization that there is no God, and that all religion is a pursuit of foolishness. Only when we achieve this, will we be released from the confines of stupidity. Everyone knows this.

You better pray that you're right about this

Dear God,

Please strike me dead right now to serve as an example to all others who defile your good name.

Or come on, at least strike me down with painful cramps or something.


....


...

Nothing.
Wuss.




Let's just say, I'm not in the least bit concerned about facing any sorts of "punishment" after I'm dead for not adhering to various BS laws of various BS religions.

if an all-powerful God were real, i doubt his actions to 'strike you down' would be dictated by your stupid wall post.

 

[IronWing]

Originally posted by: ConstipatedVigilante
Nuclear technology holds so much promise for solving so many problems. But idiots on our planet insist that nuclear energy is somehow "Bad." Using nuclear rockets, we can reduce travel to Mars to weeks instead of months, we can have nearly unlimited supplies of energy (all clean), and we can use it in medicine.

There are sooo many awesome technologies out there that we're on the brink of discovering, but the stupid religious zealots and politicians are holding us back.

Explain please.

 

[yhelothar]

Originally posted by: Muse

Originally posted by: astroidea
Brain computer interfaces.
Being able to program the brain like in the matrix, or go into any world anyone can conjure up.
Having computer enhancements to the body like the borg :devil;
There's also nanobots that's being developed that allows our blood to carry far more oxygen so we could all have the stanima of Lance Armstrong.
In short, next huge shift would be the enhancement of the human species via the biological integration of their technology.

That's likely to be a rocky road with caveats, shortcomings, unforeseen difficulties. What you might imagine ahead of time and what will happen will be quite a bit different. For instance, you can have heart transplants now, artificial hearts and some other organs may work out to some degree, but some things will be much harder.

The stamina of Lance Armstrong may be easily achieved. He's only human in today's terms, after all.

I'd imagine that ethics would be a bitch on a lot of them, especially for devices that makes us superhuman.
It might not be the next shift, but I see it being an inevitable progression of mankind.

Having a quantum leap in consciousness, on the other hand, may be near soon with neuroscience being a relatively new science, but the quickest expanding one at the moment. I think that would very possibly be the biggest leap of mankind of our generation, next to the computers/internet.

I like this quote from the site www.brainmenta.com
"It is inevitable that in the near future, neuroscience will unleash a veritable revolution in consciousness and its study, that will result in a paradigm shift orders of magnitude larger than any in science preceding it."

Imagine understanding all our mental processes to the biological and atomic level, and making psychology a science as mature as chemistry.

 

[ed21x]

back on topic, many developments/discoveries tend to build on top of one another.

electricity -> resistors/capacitors -> logic gates -> calculators -> computers

computers are probably the dominant game changer of our generation.

computers -> internet, revolutionizing communication/information

internet -> unified system that we all become a part of. basically people will eventually live in a world where every aspect of their life is digitally linked to this system. soon this ditigal domain will be the main interface between us and everything else short of food and other things that require a tangible presence.

 

[Jeff7]

Originally posted by: ed21x
if an all-powerful God were real, i doubt his actions to 'strike you down' would be dictated by your stupid wall post.

No different than praying for anything else.

Originally posted by: ironwing

Originally posted by: ConstipatedVigilante
Nuclear technology holds so much promise for solving so many problems. But idiots on our planet insist that nuclear energy is somehow "Bad." Using nuclear rockets, we can reduce travel to Mars to weeks instead of months, we can have nearly unlimited supplies of energy (all clean), and we can use it in medicine.

There are sooo many awesome technologies out there that we're on the brink of discovering, but the stupid religious zealots and politicians are holding us back.

Explain please.

Perhaps a nuclear pulse engine of some sort?

Another option would be fission reactors coupled with ion engines, though I don't know how useful they'd be on a trip to Mars. They're good for a little bit of thrust over along period. The force imparted is minimal, but the maximum speed attainable is quite fast.

Originally posted by: ed21x
...
internet -> unified system that we all become a part of. basically people will eventually live in a world where every aspect of their life is digitally linked to this system. soon this ditigal domain will be the main interface between us and everything else short of food and other things that require a tangible presence.

They'd darn well do something about improving reliability before then.

I'd also wonder about somehow using the networked computing power of the Internet for some kind of artificial intelligence. Those "maps" of the Internet look interestingly like a network of neurons.